![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-1245328548-1024x683.jpg\")
Together, the European tripwire and OAR would thus provide time and space to deploy most, if not all, the forces needed to face any Russian attack. | Mateusz Slodkowski\/AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\nMoreover, such a mission would help reveal and rebuild the continent\u2019s sorely needed force structures, manpower, combat equipment and logistics capability, which dissipated over its decades-long \u201choliday from history.\u201d<\/p>\n
Indeed, great strides have been made since Putin invaded Ukraine in 2022, but far more are needed. Ukraine has disabused both Europe and the U.S. of the notion of short wars and small budgets. And though the rearmament of European militaries is impressive, it\u2019s still inadequate to combat a full-scale Russian invasion.<\/p>\n
Along these lines, such a deployment would reveal the shortfalls of Europe\u2019s forces in full-spectrum operational capabilities.<\/p>\n
For example, while the lack of helicopters, artillery ammunition and strategic airlift has been an openly recognized problem for years, an operation in Ukraine would make apparent the lack of smaller items needed to conduct synchronized forces \u2014 or what George Patton called the \u201csymphony of Mars.\u201d Keeping a force in the field requires fuel and water tankers, camouflage nets, heaters for troop tents and hundreds of other items that are likely missing from current supply points. If leaders aren\u2019t already aware, their troops will tell them.<\/p>\n
Together, the European tripwire and OAR would thus provide time and space to deploy most, if not all, the forces needed to face any Russian attack. | Mateusz Slodkowski\/AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n
U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s plan doesn\u2019t call for abandoning Europe. America can and likely will provide significant enablers outside of Ukraine, including command and control, logistics, in-theater air transport and other assets that aren\u2019t constrained by the tyranny of long distances. Delivering long-range air defense, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance reports are just as valuable, whether provided to the European force from Kyiv or Krakow.<\/p>\n
The truth is, should this mission be realized, there will be inevitable calls for more, as well as more proximate U.S. support. Mission creep is endemic to well-meaning American military leaders that operate with allies. In one personal example, when NATO agreed to take over sectors of Afghanistan from the U.S. in 2006, alliance members initially agreed they\u2019d be self-sufficient. But soon after their contingents started deployment planning, requests for U.S. helicopters, quick reaction forces, special forces and intel support began to come in. As always, the U.S. supported within its means.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Moreover, such a mission would help reveal and rebuild the continent\u2019s sorely needed force structures, manpower, combat equipment…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":432503,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7654],"tags":[2594,7703,473,32,2000,7704,6562,299,7058,2597,2821,332,657,333,2601,771,335],"class_list":{"0":"post-432502","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ukraine","8":"tag-air-defense","9":"tag-artillery","10":"tag-defense","11":"tag-donald-trump","12":"tag-eu","13":"tag-eu-us-military-ties","14":"tag-eu27","15":"tag-europe","16":"tag-european-defense","17":"tag-military","18":"tag-nato","19":"tag-russia","20":"tag-ukraine","21":"tag-vladimir-putin","22":"tag-volodymyr-zelenskyy","23":"tag-war","24":"tag-war-in-ukraine"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115222700748778435","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/432502","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=432502"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/432502\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/432503"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=432502"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=432502"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=432502"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}